Blogging the Buckeyes

Get Email Updates

Ohio State Headlines

Our Ohio State headlines email newsletter delivers Buckeyes athletics news from
The Dispatch. Sent weekday mornings and Saturday game days during football season. You'll
also be alerted when breaking news happens involving the Buckeyes.

ELO HORIZONTE, Brazil — It’s unlikely any team has played a World Cup under more pressure than
Brazil faced this summer.

But it’s certain no team unraveled more quickly or more completely than Brazil, which was blown
out in the World Cup it is hosting in a 7-1 semifinal loss to Germany yesterday.

In truth, the Brazilians lost the match in their heads as much as on the pitch.

“Let’s put it into context. The hosts were unable to cope with the pressure,” Germany coach
Joachim Loew said. “After two goals, they were confused and they never got re-organized. We
realized they were cracking up and we took advantage of it.”

Former German goalkeeper Oliver Kahn also believed Brazil’s downfall was due to the weight of
expectation of 200 million fans who demanded that on home soil their team would win the World Cup a
record sixth time.

“This team didn’t have enough experience to come to terms with the pressure of a big tournament
like this in their own country,” Kahn said. “They fell apart emotionally today completely.”

By the end, the Germans were barely celebrating their goals, and the Brazilians, starting with
their coach, Luiz Felipe Scolari, could manage little more than blank stares. In the stands, the
Brazilian fans — the ones who stayed around at least — passed the time by cycling through obscene
chants about each player, as well as the Brazilian president, Dilma Rousseff.

At the end of the match, Brazilian midfielder Oscar fell to the ground, his face buried in his
hands, and wept openly. Captain David Luiz was also in tears.

Midfielder Luis Gustavo and left back Marcelo fell to the ground in prayer, as some fans wept,
others booed, and many just looked on open-mouthed.

When they were forced to play Germany without Neymar, their most dangerous striker who was
injured, and Thiago Silva, their captain and best central defender who was suspended a game because
of two yellow cards, the players finally cracked, giving up more goals in the first 29 minutes than
they had allowed in five games leading up to the semifinal.

Thomas Mueller got the rout started in the 11th minute, scoring his fifth goal of this World Cup
off Toni Kroos’ bending corner from the right side into the box. Mueller slipped his defender
easily, then volleyed the cross out of the air and by Brazilian goalkeeper Julio Cesar.

And it would soon get worse — much worse — for the home team with two goals by Kroos and one
each from Miroslav Klose and Sami Khedira in a six-minute span making it 5-0 Germany before the
half-hour mark.

“It was, of course, not exactly expected. The space we had was bigger than against defensive
teams,” Mueller said. “We took advantage of it superbly, the opponent at some point gets
broken."

Germany made it look easy, beating the disorganized Brazilians down the field with superior
numbers on every rush.

“Truthfully,” said Cesar, “it’s very hard to explain the unexplainable.”

With the win, the Germans advance to a World Cup final for the second time in four tournaments.
On Sunday, they will play the winner of today’s semifinal between Argentina and the Netherlands in
Rio de Janeiro.

Brazil, meanwhile, is scheduled to play the loser of that game in the third-place match on
Saturday.